Thanks for clearing that up wila. From your original post it sounded like you were suggesting the WS12 was inherently immature and not suitable as production platform. That was why I reacted! I have no issues at all with my NT4 Server VMs running on Linux WS12 Pro. I recently switched from years on Virtualbox to VMware so this is all new to me. Virtualbox IMHO is a non-production suitable product, which is why I switched camps. But I digress. I have as yet not encountered any issues with WS12 that would prevent me from using it in production. I did initially have an issue with bridged networking which I was able to workaround by switching from Bridged to Custom. The net result was the same and I have no idea why this config change was necessary but it works. When I finally get around to actually purchasing WSPro (next week), I will log a support case.
The start/stop VM with host issue I have already resolved by implementing a custom solution. I am actually happier doing it like this because I have complete control over it and I don't have to live with the restrictions of a shared VM. The solution works brilliantly.
I plan to do some stress testing this week, with a view to going live in early-mid December.
The server being replaced is a very, very old HP Proliant and therefore this project is fairly critical.
I hope WS12 will turn out to be the correct platform, but of course only time will tell.